THE competition is hotting up as judging gets underway in first Irish Curry Awards.
More than 60,000 nominations have been received with 42 eateries in Ulster in the running.
People are being called to cast votes for their favourite shortlisted eateries which will then be combined with the judges' scores to rank each eatery based on three categories, public preference, food and service.
The awards aim to bring long overdue recognition to the contribution made to Ireland's food scene by hundreds of Indian, Bangladeshi, Pakistani and other Asian chefs, restaurant workers and managers.
Commenting on the shortlists, Ali Askir, the architect of the awards and owner of celebrated Indian restaurant SAFA in Belfast, said the sheer volume of nominations showed that "recognising the contribution of this sector was long overdue".
"With so many revered establishments in contention the judging process will be challenging," he added.
For more information and to cast your vote, visit www.irishcurryawards.com. Voting closes on October 9.
